How To Beat Insomnia And Get Better Sleep

Not getting enough sleep can cause so many problems for both your health and your mind. Practice these tips and learn to sleep like a baby.

Sleep always seems to be a commodity in short supply, and many people worldwide have trouble sleeping at some point in their week. Whether it’s stress from work, low sleep quality, or a messed up internal clock, sleep problems can unleash havoc on your overall quality of life. Healthy sleep is essential for hormone production and mood regulation. If you don’t fall asleep at the same time every day, your sleep-wake cycle will become corrupted, and you can fall into a terrible state of depression and anxiety.

Sleep hygiene is the practice of taking good care of your body’s ability to repair itself at the end of the day. Close to bedtime, your body enters into a state of relaxation, and you begin to calm down. Around this time, your melatonin levels rise, and you begin to feel tired. Once you lay down in bed, the process continues, and you should continue to fall asleep. The problem arises when it’s hard to sleep well, and you have trouble staying asleep.

If you’ve been struggling with getting a good night’s rest, our list of tips below may help improve your sleep quality and allow you to sleep better for the rest of your life. After all, your health depends on your ability to get a good night s sleep.

25 Tricks for Falling Asleep

No Screens

It’s hard to do, especially when your attention is focused on your relationship or career. Modern life seems to demand quite a lot, and we’re always attached to our phones. Taking a step away from the screen and leaving it in another room will help you sleep at night. Try to set a no screen time at let 2 hours before your bedtime. When you go to bed, do so to find peace, tranquility, and quality sleep. As you pass through the cycles in the night, your mind will fall into a state of rest without any outside distractions.

No Napping, Seriously

This is one that can be tough, especially when it gets late in the day. While naps are delightful, they can leave you in a state of groggy confusion if you end up sleeping for too long. Once you’ve entered the REM sleep stage, your brain starts shutting down from the outside world. Coming back from this can ruin your sleep schedule and make it impossible to sleep well later in the day. If you must take a nap out of exhaustion, limit your sleep to 20 minutes. Set a timer for 20 and don’t hit that snooze.

Try A Leg Pillow

Here’s a tip that many men don’t know about–sleeping with a leg pillow is one way to get to sleep faster and stay asleep longer. As one of the classic sleep tips, putting a leg pillow between your knees will support your circulation better at night and help make sure you get adequate sleep. Avoid pillows that are too soft, as these can end up having the reverse effect. You need a pillow that has some strong support. People have reported that using a leg pillow throughout the night was one of the best ways to get better, healthy sleep.

Take Your Clothes Off

Clothes can be quite restrictive, especially if you get hot during the night. Get rid of the pajamas and go to bed wearing nothing at all. By allowing your body to move freely, you won’t end up constricted, waking up at all hours. Sleep and sex are directly related, so it might be time to get naked for a reason. Try to spice up your bedroom and see if your woman wants to sleep naked with you. While you may not want to get too crazy before you lay down to sleep, sex is actually something relaxing for both of you.

Get A Better Mattress

Ask any sleep medicine doctor about improving your sleep-wake cycle, and they’ll tell you to start with your mattress. If you’re sleeping on something that feels like rough plywood, you’ll never wake up feeling refreshed. The proper mattress will help you fall asleep faster, sleep better, and finally get a good night’s sleep. While this isn’t medical advice, it may be time to trade in that old mattress and upgrade to one that turns your bedroom into your sanctuary.

Make Sure It Is Super Dark In Your Bedroom

Bright light destroys your ability to sleep peacefully. If you’re working on a swing shift or just get a lot of sunlight in your bedroom, invest in some high-quality light-blocking curtains. If you start to see the bright light, your subconscious state wants to be awake and moving around. By avoiding sunlight with dark curtains, you’ll help your eyes relax and avoid the bright natural light. Let’s face it–if you wake up, you’ll just want to get out of bed.

One of the best overall sleep tips is to invest in a high-quality sleep mask. When selecting a mask, make sure you get one that elevated cushions around the eyes. This allows your eyes to move freely during the night and won’t cause any irritation to your face. Once you’re in bed, simply put the sleep mask on over your face and drift off to sleep. It usually takes less than 20 minutes to fall asleep, and you won’t even notice the eye mask until you wake up in the morning.

Go To Sleep And Wake Up At The Same Time

Setting a bedtime isn’t just for the kids. Going to bed and keeping to a strict sleep schedule is super important for people of any age. It’s very easy to miss a few hours here and there–before you know it, you’re back to struggling every day. Poor sleep can be directly attributed to feeling terrible late in the day and can keep you in a state of confused frustration. Regular exercise helps with this, as you’ll actually be tired when you lay down for the night.

Create A Nightly Ritual

Try to set a time 2 hours before you go to bed to have a time of quiet reflection. Some relaxation techniques like slow breathing, meditation, and reading have been shown to help you fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer. Sleep hygiene starts when the sun goes down and continues all the way through to the next morning. Once you’ve gotten into the habit of taking care of yourself, falling asleep becomes more comfortable than ever before.

No Caffeine After 3 PM, No Exceptions

Once you’ve set your bedtime, you’ve got to follow a few more strict guidelines. If you want better sleep, you’ve got to leave the coffee behind once the afternoon hits. It can definitely be tempting to pour yourself a cup of energy when you’re feeling low, especially as I just told you to stop taking naps, but it can come back to bite you when it’s time to sleep at night. During the day, avoid all caffeine sources, including soda, tea, coffee, and energy drinks. If you must indulge, cut off your caffeine consumption at 3 PM.

Try Gentle Yoga Before Bed

When it gets close to bedtime, doing some restorative yoga may help you fall asleep and get better sleep throughout the night. If you can get your blood flowing and your body loose, it can disperse the sleep hormones evenly throughout your entire nervous system. Yoga is guaranteed to help relax you and keep your sleep quality at its best. Careful on your water intake at this time, though. You don’t want to be waking up at all hours of the night having to rush to the bathroom.

Watch What You Eat At Night

If it’s almost time to sleep, stay away from the fridge–especially 30 minutes before bed. Nutrition plays a large role in every aspect of our lives, sleep included. Your body needs time to fully digest any food you’ve eaten before you can enter into a state of deep rest. A light snack later in the evening won’t hurt too much, but avoid junk food and drinks high in sugar. Some foods can sneak in extra caffeine, so be cautious of what you’re eating. If you want to sleep better, you’ve got to eat better. Your health depends on it.

Easy On The Booze Before Bed

Some people love to have a stiff drink right before they head to sleep. While this may feel good, it doesn’t actually help you sleep better–in fact; you can harm your sleep quality with too much alcohol before bed. While a glass of wine may seem harmless, alcohol can interfere with your body and its process of entering into sleep. Avoid alcohol before you hit the pillow, and you’ll wake up feeling refreshed and ready. Caffeine and alcohol will basically destroy your sleep schedule so avoid it at all costs.

White Noise

Silence can be deafening for some men. If you struggle with hearing too much when it’s quiet time, a bit of white noise can make the situation much better. If you’re looking for tips on where to find the best noise generator, there are a ton of free resources all over the internet and plenty of apps to choose from on your phone. The subtle sound of the noise may help keep you asleep and cover up the outside world, allowing you to rest and regain your health.

Binaural Beats

This is one health tip that may seem a bit out there, but it definitely works well. Binaural beats in the range of 1 to 4 Hz have been linked to deep sleep and relaxation. Essentially these frequencies slow down your brainwave function and make it easier for you to fall asleep faster. Your brain waves begin to slow down a few hours before bed, and these beats can help them get to a state of ultimate calm. I use this often. I found a great binaural beats playlist on Spotify I listen to often. The secret is to really sink into the sound and don’t fight it. The first few times may be awkward as the sounds are working to change your brainwave patterns, but if you can drop into Theta you so close to sleeping.

Try Reading Before You Go To Bed

If you’re not much for reading during the day, try reading a book before you go to sleep. Many people worldwide follow this practice, and it allows your mind to calm down before entering into a state of rest. Once bedtime comes, you’ll have something to look forward to and a way to distract yourself from the light of the screen. It’s been shown repeatedly; in fact, a recent Harvard Medical School study showed that reading before bed each night improved overall sleep quality.

Get Up And Do Something Mundane If You Can’t Sleep

If you’ve been trying to drift off into dreamland but you can’t, it’s best to wake up and do something productive. It may seem like one of the more counterintuitive tips, but getting up and moving around can help your body reset the sleep cycle and try again. Waking up right after you drift asleep is a common, frustrating problem for many men. Don’t just lay in the dark; sit up and go for a walk around.

This isn’t an excuse to check your phone or watch TV. The blue light from these devices is going to wake you up even more.

Keep It Cool In Your Bedroom

If you’re fortunate to live where you can leave your windows open, let in the cool breeze during the night. Otherwise, keep the A/C on and the heat low in your bedroom. Your body does get its best sleep when the temperature is on the cooler side. Now, you don’t want to be freezing, but you definitely want it to be cool. One of the best tips is to keep your thermostat to around 68 degrees. This is the perfect temperature for quality sleep.

Take A Bath Or Hot Shower Before Bed

There’s nothing more relaxing than a warm bath before bed. In fact, it’s one of the best things you can do for your sleep health. The warmth of the water relaxes your body and mind, while the steam helps put you into a state of total rejuvenation. And if you suffer from anxiety, which can really affect your sleep, a hot shower or bath helps to get you in the body and out of the mind which reduces anxiety.

Meditation

Meditation is one of the most excellent practices you can do for your mental health. When you can quiet your mind from the outside world, you can enter into a state of complete and total rest. If you’re looking to make a change, attempt to meditate for 10 minutes before bed each night and see how it works for you. Be patient, it takes time to learn how to clear the mind and actually meditate. Practice makes perfect.

Have An Orgasm

Sleep and sex definitely fit well together. Having a powerful orgasm right before you head to sleep is a great way to achieve a full night’s rest and wake up feeling your best. Another recent study from Harvard Medical School showed that the men who had sex right before sleep woke up feeling more powerful and ready to take on the day ahead. Now you have evidence to show your wife.

Try Natural Sleep Aids

There’s plenty of natural sleep aids to choose from, but some can be worse for your health than others. Be sure you’re taking an all-natural sleep aid and not cough medicine or prescription pills. Magnesium and zinc help the body sleep better. Test your body’s response with supplements like Melatonin. If your body is naturally producing enough of it taking it can actually KEEP you awake.

The 4-7-8 breath

Slow down your breath, and you can slow down your entire being. This 4-7-8 technique is based upon a breathing pattern developed by Dr. Andrew Weil. Based on an ancient Yogic practice known as pranayama, you can gain control of your breath and your mind through this powerful practice.

First, relax, this is a great technique to do when you’re in bed tossing and turning. Lie on your back. Take a deep inhale for 4 seconds. Then exhale for 7 seconds. Then pause with your lungs empty for a count of 8. Do this 3-5 times and see how that works.

Progressive Relaxation Technique

This is a fantastic solution if you’re struggling to sleep after a hard workout. By controlling your breathing and squeezing your muscles, you can engage the center of your core and help your overall sleep health. From the top to the bottom begin by tensing each muscle group for a few seconds and then completely relax it. Move through your whole body from the head to your toes. This helps to relax any tension you’re carrying in your body. The tension you may not even realize you had until your done.

If All Else Fails, Talk to Your Doctor.

If you’ve tried every single thing on this list and still can’t wake up feeling refreshed, you might need to talk with your doctor about your options. Through sound medical advice and some close observation, they’ll be able to diagnose any issue you’re currently having.